Patient elevating means for use in the process of spontaneous elimination



Sept. 9, 1969 w. M. EMERY 3,465,367

PATIENT ELEVATING MEANS FOR USE IN THE PROCESS OF SPONTANEOUS ELIMINATION Filed July 25, 1967 IN [/5 N TOR United States Patent US. Cl. 4-112 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE With increased nurse shortage and hospital costs, the effortless raising of the patient to a position conducive to spontaneous elimination and the suspension of a disposable bag thereunder has attained major importance.

CROSS REFERENCES Re: Patient elevators, F. L. Lowthers et al. #3,175,227; F. K. Day #1,229,240, application #488,419 of applicant abandoned as unworkable because of dead centers.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Many hospital patients such as cardiac patients are unable to leave their beds or raise themselves to a suitable position for rectal or urinary eliminations. The spontaneous initiation of these bodily functions are often dependent on physiological and habit factors such as customary position, the feel of a conventional toilet seat, security, privacy, etc. It is important that any elevating device should duplicate these factors. Also the device must be operable from a very flat position so the patient can effortlessly roll thereon and thereafter be raised to a 60 position. While raising the patients weight through this range, the device must function without the dead center or near dead center conditions that would normally be expected while preferably beginning with a slow motion having a maximum mechanical advantage. The device must provide side rails for security, a conventional toilet seat, and be operable by the mechanism of the hospital bed upon which it rests and to which it is securely attachable and easily detached.

Two reasons why in the fifty years that this problem has been obvious that no satisfactory device has been provided include (1) the forward movement of such a device when the head of the bed is raised and (2) the difiiculty of positioning the seat in alignment with the buttocks and still provide sufficient head room therebetween and the head board on account of the conventional location of the bed hinge.

For clarity this background outline places the most important part last, i.e. the complete elimination of the bed pan which has been the source of much torture to many patients, disturbing hospital noises and nursing inefficiency, lost motion and personal discontent. Having securely elevated the toilet seat, I no longer need a rigid pan to support the patients weight and I can attach and suspend therefrom a flexible poly or disposable bag to the under side of the seat.

Hospitals report that the flushing of poly bags down conventional toilets is likely to block the plumbing because they often open up like parachutes. Accordingly, my invention provides convenient attachment to the seat, sanitary means for handling the disposable excreta bag, for emptying it into the toilet and thereafter collapsing and keeping said bag collapsed in a unique manner.

FIG. 1 is a side elevation of my disposable bag support and patient elevator shown in a flattened position on the upper end of a conventional hospital mattress frame and bed,

3,465,367 Patented Sept. 9, 1969 FIG. 2 is a top view of FIG. 1,

FIG. 3 is a side elevation of the toilet seat and bag support partially raised,

FIG. 4 is a section taken on 44 of FIG. 2,

FIG. 5 is a section taken on 5-5 of FIG. 2.

Shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 is the head portion of a conventional hospital bed 10 which may be hand or motor operated, horizontal bed frame 11, head board 12, operable spring frame 13 and mattress 14.

Arms 21 hooked at 22 of my toilet seat and bag elevator 20 pass around the head of mattress 14 to securely engage spring frame 13. Frame 13 is usually angle iron and arms 21 may be metal tubing. The length of arms may be adjusted by utilizing a series of holes 28 to suit the length of the conventional spring frame 13 from the top of head end 15 to the pivot 16 of movable section 17 of frame 13. U hanger 23 telescopes with hooked arms 21. U frame or lever 24 which may be tubing is shown pivoted to hooked arms 21 and U hanger 23 by a carriage bolt 25 and wing nut 26 engaging any one of the holes 28 which also pass through 23 and 24.

Rear 31 of conventional toilet seat 30 is supported by an extended plastic or metal spacer part 32 which has a journaled end 33 engaging U hanger 23 and its opposite end 34 is screwed at 39 to the rear 31 of seat 30.

Foot 50 slidable on mattress 14 supports the bottom end 51 of U frame 24 and may be made of extruded plastic, and may have two integral or attached longitudinal snap ribs 52 which provide a journal for end 51 when mating half tube 55 is snapped thereon or engaged therewith which makes a permanent and easy assembly. Mutually engaging parts 56 of 52 and 55 may be made in various ways such as a spear on one or both sides engaging closely spaced twin hooks which may be a preferable construction if ribs 52 were not integral with foot 50 so that the same extrusion die could be used for both half tube 55 and the equivalent of ribs 52. The center line of ribs 52 may be positioned more to the rear of foot 50 than shown to improve the forward sliding action of foot 50 when the bed is raised.

FIG. 3 shows bed 10 or movable section 17 raised about 45. The maximum of most beds is closer to 60. Especially at these angles U frame 24 becomes arms or side rails which provide security for the patient. The secondary bends 27 of U hanger 23 provide separation between 23 and U frame 24 to avoid hand pinching in case frame 24 is grasped by the patient when the seat is lowered from the position shown in FIG. 3 to that shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

In operation the patient rolls on to his side on one side of the bed. The toilet seat elevator 20 is then hooked to the bed frame in the vacant half of the bed. The patient then rolls back on to the seat 30 which is approximately in position to receive his buttocks. Extension 32 is essential to accomplish this on most hospital beds with the length of 17 shown for a patient of average height without interference between his head and head board 12. Where a longer bed is not provided for a taller person the movable section 17 can be raised 15 degrees with materially raising the seat 30 or parts 23 and 24 from the mattress to interfere with the roll-on of the patient because of the initial slow movement of the seat. Due to the softness of the mattress 14, the initial contact of the weight of the patient presses such small projecting parts as fins 37, tube 35, etc. into the mattress so that only the thickness of the seat which is little more than one inch or U frame which is little more than A" is above the mattress. All journals are substantially in a common plane. Arms 24 if attached or pivoted at a higher point such as to the hooked arms 21 near their major bend then arms 24 would provide higher side rails than shown in FIG. 3.

Bracket 61) extending between U hanger 23 and U frame 24 limits the relative movement of 24 and 26 at the position shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 to provide easier handling and carrying by the nurse from bed to bed.

After the patient has rolled on to the fiattended elevating means and positioned himself on the seat, the bed is conventionally cranked or eleva ed by motor, and the patient without effort on his part is raised to a sifting position, at which time the seat is also raised. A conventional bed pan can now be placed under the seat. Foot 50 will sink somewhat into the mattress under the weight of the patient as it slides or moves toward the foot of the bed, so the net height of the seat may vary considerably. Fortunately because of the flexibility of the disposable bag the variaion is not important.

It is partitcularly noteworthy that wiih the construction shown, there is no dead center relationship initially or while the patient is beingelevated in contradistinction to constructions shown in Patent No. 3,175,- 227 or my abandoned application, Also noteworthy is the positioning of journal 33 which provides for the effortless lifting and support of rear 31 of seat 30 since it hangs directly from the end 15 of the movable bed section 17, and the front end of seat 30 is not lifted as the result of a pivotal movement but its elevation is due to the longitudinal sliding of block 38 on U frame 24. This avoids dead center relationships previously encountered.

While unlike the construction of Patent 1,222,240, the initial part of my movement is slow with a maximum mechanical advantage and the resultant ratio of movement increases as the actuation advances up to the 60 degree conventional limit of the bed in contra-distinction to the leverage of Patent 1,222,240 or other patents which use only one lever, or do not raise the patient to a sitting position essential for his elimination. Also the softness and the comfort of the mattress is always at the back of the patient adding to his feeling of security from the guard arm-like position of the U frame 24 and preserves his privacy since the nurse need not be Watching for fear he might fall off.

I claim:

1. A journaled jointed device for lifiing a bed patient actuated by movements of a hospital type bed and operable from a substantially flat position, wherein its journals are substantially in one plane to an elevated position, said movement occurring without near dead center relationships between said journals, comprising a toilet seat, a journaled lever arm to support said seat, and a bearing longitudinally slidable on said arm interconnecting said arm and said seat.

2. In a device as set forth in claim 1 wherein a foot is loca ed at one end of said lever arm whereby said lever arm is journaled thereto and said foot is slidable on top of the associated bed.

3. In a device as set forth in claim 1 wherein there is journaled means to suspend the rear end of said seat and spaced substantially to the rear of said seat.

4. In a device as set forth in claim 3 wherein said lever arm provides a side rail guard for said patient when said device is in a raised position.

5. In a device as set forth in claim 1, wherein the upper end of said lever arm hooks around the head end of a conventional hospital bed and is suspended thereby when said head end is elevated.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,229,240 6/1917 Day 5-327 1,503,475 7/1924 Martin 4-113 2,399,792 5/1946 Copp 297-255 2,713,688 7/1955 Johnson 4-112 2,834,032 5/1958 Scott 5-327 2,924,266 2/1960 Goldberg 297-255 3,175,227 3/1965 Lowthers 4-112 3,274,618 9/1966 Kahllo 4-112 3,345,023 10/1967 Scott et a1 4-110 3,381,315 5/1968 Glassberg 4-142 LAVERNE D. GEIGER, Primary Examiner HENRY K. ARTIS, Assistant Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 

